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Take a trip with me to Camp Crystal Lake... 2:05pm, June 11, 2008  Greetings from Camp Crystal Lake. I told you I would try and leak out a photo now and then, so here is a sneak peak at the Camp Crystal Lake sign! (Click the image to see it larger)We deliberated for a long time about what that sign would look like cause we wanted it to be really creepy. The photo was shot on set in Bastrop, Texas, where for the next couple of days we are shooting a couple of death scenes. One is an homage to one of my favorite kills and the other involves a machete, someone's skull and third degree burns. These are very important kills as I have Guy Stodel from New Line and Dan Levine from Paramount here just to make sure. Talk about pressure! For the role of Donnie in the film, we brought back an actor who we loved in The Hitcher- Kyle Davis. He was so hilarious as the clerk in the convenience store we asked screenwriters Shannon and Swift to write a role for him. Kyle was great and always comes up with some hilarious lines. This week's gem was,"Came this close to hitting the start button on the wup ass machine Boy!" You will laugh your ass off at him. We are entering the final week of the film here and Friday, June 13th is coming soon... what a night on set that will be... stay tuned!!! - Brad Fuller
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Why THIS Friday the 13th is important! 6:57pm, June 2, 2008 Are you superstitious? I am not, but I am a bit freaked that the last day of the shooting schedule is falling on Friday, June 13th. So get this; the movie wraps on Friday the 13th and then the movie opens on the next Friday the 13th on the calendar, which is Friday, February 13th, 2009. Is that enough bad luck for you? Now we have two weeks left to shoot and anything could happen with the schedule, but it has become a crew wide mandate to wrap on that Friday the 13th. It's a point of pride... So with two weeks left, let's recap. At this point the kills are now in double digits and span the gamut from blood filled and drawn out to quick and surprising. We have kills that fans will recognize, but we have added a twist or three - some kills that you have never seen before. The kids in this film also have a lot of fun... drinking, smoking weed and having sex. There are tons of all three. And finally we have the big man with the machete. We have worked hard to create a Jason who is a cold blooded killing machine and Derek Mears has brought so much more to the iconic character. Derek, at his core is a huge horror geek and is constantly asking himself... "Would Jason do that?". It really elevates the film to have an actor who has so much respect for the character and franchise and is always concerned about keeping the character true to its roots. In fact, he is so committed that he got married during the shoot and only missed one day. Watch out because there is a Mrs. Voorhees who is owed a honeymoon... - Brad Fuller
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So, who is playing young Jason Voorhees? Actors shed a little blood for the camera... 1:55am, May 15, 2008  Greetings from Crystal Lake! First let's reveal something here that I don't think anyone knows. Young Jason Voorhees is being played by Caleb Guss (pictured). The make-up is awesome, freaky and true to the original. Though he only worked a few days - the imagery adds a very disturbing depth to the character. A couple of other things; first of all it feels like we are getting great footage, but in exchange our actors are paying the price with their blood. In order of blood spilled, Aaron Yoo just returned to set after a week in the hospital. The fine doctors here split him down the middle and repaired an obstruction in his intestine and now he is sporting 27 staples holding together his abdomen. Not optimal to say the least. Especially considering today's work required him to fall to the ground out of the back of an Escalade. Yoo is a trooper; he bravely endured the pain that forced him to lie down after he was done to make sure he didn't disembowel himself. In the back of my head I wondered if his insides spilled out should we shoot it and figure out how to work it into the movie. That is how horror movies screw with your head... Second episode of blood spilling claimed the lovely Danielle Panabaker. She, of an easy smile and easygoing spirit, commits every time, especially in scenes that require full speed running. Last night we were shooting a scene where Travis Van Winkle and Danielle are running full speed down a narrow hall, they got tangled up and Danielle's chin collided with the hard edge of the window sill leaving her down for the count. She was out cold for a minute with a bloody chin... she's a tough girl and was willing to come back the next day to shoot, but we adjusted our schedule to accommodate her ailing chin. In addition, two other actors bit the dust for various reasons as well, so three weeks in we have had four "episodes". But I can assure you what happens to them on camera will be much worse... - Brad Fuller
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Welcome to Camp Crystal Lake! Let's get started with a picture... 7:38pm, May 12, 2008 Greetings from Crystal Lake; I have been waiting two years to say that!  Bay, Form and I decided long ago that the opportunity to remake FRIDAY THE 13TH was only worthwhile if we could do it right. Along the way to this balmy night outside Austin, Texas there is a wide swath of discarded scripts, fired actors, and wardrobe pictures that would have been the subject of endless berating amongst the online community. But through it all we remained focused on the path to attempt to produce a great horror film, worthy of its lineage. And tonight, my fourth on set, but the first that brought me face to face with Mr. Voorhees in all his glory - I can tell you without hesitation that every minute of frustration, pain and misery was worth it - really worth it, because tonight Jason Vorhees scared the shit out of me. No, he didn't threaten me with that huge machete; all he did was look into the camera and every hair on my body stood up. Derek Mears captures the best of the all the Jason's and injects the character with his own element of tangible menace.In this movie you will see a feral, brutal Jason who is hell-bent on killing in astonishing ways. And tonight our director, Marcus Nispel, constructed a shot of Jason as he is about to strike... that is when I got scared. The shot is iconic in its construction. It's our "Batman" or "Spiderman" shot and when you see the movie you will know exactly what I am talking about. It is the single shot that tells you everything you need to know about Jason. I so badly want to post that image right here and now, but if I did even Jason couldn't protect me from the army of lawyers and execs who would want to kill me. But here is what I will do! I am working hard to get pictures from the set and my present to you is the first ever behind-the-scenes photo from FRIDAY THE 13TH! The image shows my partner, Andrew Form and me hanging on set in front of a Crystal Lake police car in between set ups. What you are seeing is the before version of the car - the after version has considerably more blood and broken glass. But, let's start slow, get the suits used to me leaking stuff here on my blog and see how far we can take it. Sound good? One more thing - I am working with Bloody-Disgusting on introducing you to each cast member via my video blog. So check back soon! Note: Click the image to see it much larger! - Brad Fuller
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Final thoughts on Unborn -- Friday the 13th here we come! 5:17pm, May 8, 2008 I am sitting in the cabin of Los Angeles bound 767 after completing "The Unborn" in Chicago. It is always a bizarre feeling when you wrap a movie. You go into it with so many expectations. Wanting so badly to make sure everything works out perfectly. When it is over some of your expectations were exceeded and some weren't. But here is the thing... there is no such thing as perfect when you make a movie. There are pleasant surprises and horrible dilemmas and everything in between. Under the heading of pleasant surprises comes shooting an exorcism scene in a place everyone felt was haunted. The bizarre occurrences at that setting created an authenticity that seemed to elevate the sequence to a level none of us could have imagined. The ghosts running around that place saw to it that we experienced an earthquake, power outage, exploding lights and general freakiness so that by the time we were shooting the actual exorcism, it felt like Gary Oldman and Idris Elba were actually exorcising that building. When you see the scene in the film I know audiences will feel it. Other pleasant surprises was putting Odette Yustman in the lead and watching her shine beyond everyone's expectations and truly become the heart and soul of the film. She was a total sport whose unwavering passion for the project found herself covered in bugs (that actually stung), disgusting slime, running around in skimpy outfits in sub freezing Chicago winter weather and in one scene actually let another actor put an external eye speculum... (it was painful to see done... you may remember it from "A Clockwork Orange") in her eye. Yet, through it all - she never, ever complained - always ready to do it again if necessary. Inversely, we found ourselves against horrible obstacles that certainly took their toll. A key member of the production broke his leg (not on set) which led to all sorts of scheduling headaches not, to mention the pain and suffering of dealing with a broken leg. After a particularly grueling scene requiring an infant and a nine-year-old boy to work together, we learned the next day that the film was potentially "flashed" and had to try and recreate a very complex scene. On another occasion half of a days shot footage just disappeared into the shipping world ether... gone (luckily was later found). There were numerous exhausting night shoots with White Castle sliders at 6am for breakfast (grueling, not glamorous). Through it all, the skilled commander of this close knit crew was David Goyer, whose eager smile and unstoppable energy and drive resulted in an engrossing, original story that will scare you and get under your skin... Looking back on it now, I can honestly say that it was a truly gratifying experience and I hope that when you see it you'll feel our efforts were worthwhile. On Wednesday, I will begin six weeks with Jason Voorhees. Already two weeks into production, I can assure you of a couple of things. The cast is awesome and most are hardcore fans of the original series - and as such are committed to making the best Friday the 13th yet. If there were no blood at all in the movie (there is tons) it would get a hard R-rating just for nudity and sexual situations alone. And finally, and most importantly Jason Voorhees is a bloodthirsty maniac with a knack for killing in new and original ways that will satisfy even the most hardcore gore hound. Please check back here often as I will update frequently and try to sneak some photos of the goings on from camp Crystal Lake. - Brad Fuller
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I can now officially say that I believe in ghosts! 5:56pm, April 24, 2008 I realize that most people will think what I am about to say is total bullshit. That is fine, and I expect it, but what I am writing about tonight is based on my experience over the last few days. We are shooting The Unborn tonight at an abandoned college an hour outside of Chicago. I have been told that the property used to contain Indian effigy mounts. During the Civil War, soldiers were housed here and later it became a Catholic school where three girls died. Now it is an abandoned college that is due for demolition. For the last 4 days we have been shooting an exorcism scene for the film in which the words that Gary Oldman chants are directly from the Old Testament. During this time, I have come to the conclusion that this place is haunted... before I came here I wasn't a believer, but over the course of this past week so many odd things have happened that I can't dismiss what is going on. When we shot here a couple of weeks ago I heard footsteps walking down the hall above where we were shooting - problem is the floor above us was sealed off and it would have been impossible for someone to gain access to that area. There also have been multiple sightings of "ghosts"... Some crew members have seen bright lights in places where there is no electricity. Another crew member told me that he saw a "torso in shadow". The final straw was Yuriy Chernin, a set PA's who went up to the fourth floor with two other PA's (Senica Billingsley & Mike Zeller) who both claim they see unexplainable things "all the time" up there (we are only shooting on the first and second floor). The picture you are looking at was taken of Senica & Mike as they were walking the halls of the fourth floor late last night. Yuriy took the photo just as Mike (on the right) said he felt a coldness come over him as the hair stood up on his neck. They showed me the picture right after they took it, which eliminated the Photoshop option. Is it a ghost?? - you tell me.... but as I keep looking at it, and it looks more and more like hands from a torso about to grab them. There is an attic in this building (above the fourth floor) that no one on the crew has been bold enough to venture up to, yet... Click the image to see it super-sized  - Brad Fuller
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Chicago QUAKES During Unborn Exorcism! 9:30pm, April 21, 2008 Greetings from Chicago - a wonderful place to make a movie and terrifying place to have an exorcism. I am here shooting "The Unborn," which was born in David Goyer's brain and is being skillfully directed by him. Tonight we are shooting one of the climatic scenes in the film in which Gary Oldman and Idris Elba are conducting an exorcism. We are shooting on location at an old abandoned chapel with cracked stained glass windows, peeling paint and ruptured floors. The place feels like it belongs in a World War 2 aftermath scene. Now before I go on, I want to remind you that I have shot films in unsettling places before. I am convinced that the house we shot the "Amityville Horror" in was haunted and the Hewitt House from "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" had a total of nine people die in it - all by "natural causes" - or so I was told. But I digress. So tonight we are shooting this scene -- it's 3:30 in the morning and we are all exhausted. Lights are flickering, wind is blowing and Gary Oldman is trying to be heard above all the chaos. It feels so real that those of us seated in front of the monitors were freaked out and thrilled at the same time. Goyer painstakingly recreated this exorcism rite from the Old Testament. The words Gary Oldman is saying are directly from the Old Testament and since we are running the scene all the way thru in each take, I found myself completely wrapped up in the scene. For a second I forgot we were filming a movie, and then the room started to shake... I am not screwing around here, the room shook, chandeliers swayed, and our 25 foot long lighting balloon exploded - sending shards of glass raining down! Chicago, along with neighboring cities throughout Illinois and Indiana, were experienced the second largest earthquake in the history of these parts. Now you can say that it's a coincidence that we had a 5.2 magnitude earthquake while shooting our exorcism scene - but when you finally see the scene, you'll know why the actors look so freaked out, and why am writing this blog from the safety of a particularly hardy doorway. - Brad Fuller
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Welcome To Platinum Dunes 2:15pm, April 13, 2008 I have been a fan of Bloody-Disgusting for a long time. Though the site hasn't always loved what we do at Platinum Dunes, I admire its devotion to the genre that we all love. I have spent countless hours reading comments and there have been many times when input from BD readers have had impact on our films. Being in the remake business certainly opens us up to criticism and scrutiny and we welcome that. So, for this, my first post I want to discuss ratings. And specifically the rating of our remake of Friday 13th. Everytime I read something about the movie people suggest that it might be a PG-13 film. I ask YOU Bloody Disgusting reader, how could it be? In fact, none of our remakes have been PG-13. How do you remake a rated R horror movie and take the guts out literally and figuratively? What is F13 without sex, drugs and really, really long sharp machete? And why would we, horror fans ourselves, produce a movie devoid of the things that made the title so appealing in the first place. So let me say for the record, that the F13 that we start shooting this Thursday is a full bodied, rated R film. It has insane kills that will be shown in all their glory- it has a group of college students who drink and even have sex. We are betting that if we don't hold back that the audience will reward us for being bold in a time when some horror movies are playng the ratings game. So we embrace the R rating Friday the 13th will have, and hope you will too. I hope that as production progresses you will come to rely on this blog as the place to come for all things F13. I welcome your comments and thoughts. - Brad Fuller
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This is the official blog page for Brad Fuller. Platinum Dunes has produced The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Amityville Horror, The Hitcher, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning and the forthcoming Unborn, Horsemen, Friday the 13th, The Birds and A Nightmare on Elm Street. Watch this spot for inside stories, scoops, first looks and more!
OLDER NEWS Why THIS Friday the 13th is important! Posted June 2, 2008 So, who is playing young Jason Voorhees? Actors shed a little blood for the camera... Posted May 15, 2008 Welcome to Camp Crystal Lake! Let's get started with a picture... Posted May 12, 2008 Final thoughts on Unborn -- Friday the 13th here we come! Posted May 8, 2008 I can now officially say that I believe in ghosts! Posted April 24, 2008 Chicago QUAKES During Unborn Exorcism! Posted April 21, 2008 Welcome To Platinum Dunes Posted April 13, 2008 NOW ON DVD
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